Forget Friends, Family Is The Key To A Long And Happy Life

People with close family ties live longer than those with a network of really good friends, according to a study.

It found that for older adults, having more or closer family members – particularly a husband or wife – decreases the likelihood of death.

Having lots of close friends did not have the same effect.

Study lead author Doctor James Iveniuk, of the University of Toronto in Canada, said: ‘We found that older individuals who had more family in their network, as well as older people who were closer with their family, were less likely to die.’

People aged between 57 and 85 who said they felt ‘extremely close’ to family members they listed as among their closest confidants had about a six percent risk of mortality within the next five years, compared to a 14 per cent risk among those who said they were ‘not very close’ to the family members they listed.